Android sees phone sales grow by 400 per cent in Asia

Responding to the phenomenal growth in sales across Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand, Indonesia, Vietnam and the Philippines, Google has announced that its Android Market will increase consumer access and developer support for paid applications in several new countries that were previously untapped.

In a press statement, Google announced that developers in 20 new countries can now sell paid apps on Android Market. "Over the next two weeks, the number of countries where Android users can purchase priced apps will increase to 32 including the addition of Singapore. Consumers in these newly supported countries will have access to free and paid apps in Android Market, which they can access directly from their Android-powered device," the statement said.

It is expected that 80,000-plus apps will populate the marketplace in Android's two-year-old nascent platform while competing against Apple's App Store. Chinese telecommunications equipment manufacturer Huawei Technologies has already pledged to place its support behind Google's mobile operating system (OS) and use Android to power its upcoming smartphones and tablets.

While the expansion of Android Market will mean more applications for games, social and productivity apps for consumers, and selling opportunities for developers it will also put a halt to the pirated apps that had previously marred the smartphone’s platform.

Additionally, a number of telcos are also opening up their Android app stores, making it lucrative to the users.

Arun Kumar, head of digital for Asia-Pacific at Mediabrands Singapore, believes there are several reasons why Android is becoming more popular in Southeast Asia.

"Firstly, Apple has very stringent rules with the telcos," he says. "Secondly, iTunes stores across Asia are really low with no stores in China, India or Indonesia. Plus, Apple gives very little to developers compared to Android, with the latter not too stringent on the content,” he states. “On the other hand, Android applications are better than Apple, the speed and usability is faster and the device itself is not too pricey, which will reinforce its position in Southeast Asia.”  

Kumar also states that advertising on Android is high and while he attributes a part of the reason to it being new, he emphatically states," Mobile advertisers can't ignore Android."

With the likes of Blackberry and iPhone priced at the upper reaches of the smartphone market, Android is geared to capture the market space with similar benefits at more affordable prices.

However, pricing alone is not what is setting Google's prodigy apart, it is instead the apps. And it may well be the battle of the app stores that will determine the clear winner.